Nikolija
|death_date = |birth_place = Zagreb, Croatia |origin = Belgrade, Serbia |instrument = Vocals |genre = Pop, R&B, hip hop |occupation = Singer, rapper, model |years_active = 2010–present |label = IDJTunes, City Records |associated_acts = |website = |current_members = |past_members = }} Nikolija Jovanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Николија Јовановић, born on 19 October 1989), often simply known as Nikolija, is a Serbian singer, rapper and model. She first gained media attention as a daughter of folk singer Vesna Zmijanac, before pursuing a music career herself with single "Ćao zdravo" in 2013. Her debut album №1 (2016) was released to general success and was preceded by several standalone releases, such as viral hits "Alkohola litar" featuring Elitni Odredi and "Opasna igra", the latter of which was the most viewed music video by a Serbian artist in 2015. Nikolija released her second album Yin & Yang in 2019, ranking her among the most streamed regional artists on Spotify. Although often described as an R&B performer, Nikolija became recognised for blending urban contemporary with pop-folk music. She is also known for her distinctive and often reinvented fashion style. Early life Jovanović was born on October 19, 1989 in Zagreb, SFR Yugoslavia, but raised in Belgrade. The daughter of the popular Yugoslavian folk singer, Vesna Zmijanac, and Vladimir Jovanović, PhD in economics who worked as the marketing chief at PGP RTS, her parents divorced soon after she had been born. Nikolija moved to Athens, Greece for her senior year of high school were she also attended the American Deree College, majoring in economics. It was during these years that Jovanović initially started performing in the local night clubs as a dancer and MC, for which she gained reputation of a "party girl" and was described as famous for being famous by the Serbian media. In 2010, she appeared on Survivor Srbija VIP: Philippines alongside her mother, where she was the first contestant to be voted out and later voluntarily walked from the show. Career 2011-2016: Career beginnings and №1 After returning to Serbia, in March 2013, without intentions of pursuing a music career in her home country, Nikolija released her first single "Ćao zdravo" (Bye, Bye) through recently established IDJTunes. Although initially deemed controversial with more dislikes than likes ratio on YouTube, the song gained her substantial public attention. Same year Nikolija performed guest verses on the lead single "Milion dolara" (Million Dollars) for Ana Nikolić's fourth album of the same name and released a self-titled song. Due to commercial success of these songs Jovanović cites herself as the first Serbian mainstream female MC. The following year, Nikolija raised controversy for appearing in the music video for the song "Miss C.O.K.E." by the Greek act The Hype, which showed her consuming drugs. Jovanović defended herself by saying it was all an act and a modelling gig. She was also a contestant on the Serbian version of Dancing with the Stars, where she got eliminated sixth. Then released the follow-up singles "Alkohola litar" (Liter of Alcohol) in collaboration with Elitni odredi and "Kako posle mene" (How After Me) in August and October, respectively. With these releases Nikolija marked a significant transition from her previous work, embracing a more commercial pop-folk sound and singing rather than just rapping. She also served as a model during the Belgrade Fashion Week, walking the runway while wearing a provocative dress by George Styler. In December, Dado Polumenta's single "Premija" (Premium) was released featuring Nikolija. In August 2015, she had the biggest success yet with her solo single "Opasna igra" (Dangerous Game). Jovanović also released a ballad titled "Ljubavni maneken" (Love Mannequin) in October. In July 2016, Nikolija released yet another promotional single, EDM-infused "Niko kao mi" (No One Like Us). Her debut album, titled №1, which included songs that had been previously released as well as three new tracks, was dropped on 20 October 2016 under City Records. 2017-present: Standalone releases and Yin & Yang In March 2017, she had her first release since the album with "Promeni mi planove" (Change My Plans). In July, Nikolija had a summer hit with "Loš momak" (Bad Boy), but then saw moderate success with the following singles "Moj tempo" (My Tempo) and "Malo" (Little). Also that year, Jovanović scored a minor movie role in the post-apocalyptic fiction Volja sinovljeva alongside Žarko Laušević and Sergej Trifunović in the lead roles. The motion picture, which still hasn't had its premiere, later served her as a music video inspiration for her forthcoming single "Nema limita" (No Limit), released in May 2018. Another single, titled "Slažem" (I'm Stacking), was released in August. She announced her second album by releasing two more singles, "Yin & Yang" and "Nije lako biti ja" (It's Not Easy Being Me) featuring Serbian trap artist Fox in March and April, respectively. On 24 April 2019, she released her sophomore record, also titled Yin & Yang, which she had been working on for the past year, through IDJTunes. In June, Nikolija appeared on the single "Meduza" (Medusa) from Relja Popović's forthcoming debut solo album. While in September, she released "Sija grad" (The City's Shining). In December, Nikolija had a guest performance at the opening night of Merlinka Festival of LGBT-oriented films in the Belgrade Youth Center. At the end of the year, she scored 10 million streams on Spotify and with 127 thousand monthly listeners Nikolija was the fifth most popular regional female artist on this platform. Discography Studio albums * №1 (2016) * Yin & Yang (2019) Category:Artists Category:NVSC 21 artists Category:NVSC 26 artists